NFL Draft: Charles Demmings scouting report

Strengths

Demmings’ physical tools immediately stand out on tape. His tall, wiry frame with good length allows him to press, jam, and disrupt wide receivers off the line of scrimmage, messing with their route timing. He’s not just physical playing press, either, as he plays with legitimate physicality at the catch point, in run support, and in all phases of his game.

On top of that frame and physicality, Demmings has the long speed and length to be a blanket when targeted vertically. He can play comfortably from a trail technique, relying on his athleticism and length to help him attack the catch point or go after the ball himself, resulting in tons of PBUs and INTs on his stat sheet.

All of that, along with Demmings’ explosive trigger downhill from off coverage and smooth hip fluidity, makes him a ball of clay that the right coaching staff could quickly develop into a plus starter in the NFL.

Weaknesses

For all of the physical tools, some refinement is needed with Demmings, particularly with his body control in coverage. He tends to play far too upright, which hurts his ability to quickly transition from a backpedal or slide step into triggering downhill, a concern that also shows up with his agility testing.

For as willing a tackler as Demmings is, the technique needs to be cleaned up to bring down more threatening ball carriers at the NFL level. He also needs to drastically improve his ability to disengage from blockers on the perimeter, especially considering his size and length should be assets against receivers trying to block him up.

There are also some concerns about his discipline with his landmarks in Zone drops and ability to recognize routes developing in front of him, as well as the big question about how he’ll handle top-tier competition.

These are almost all development-related weaknesses, however, that can be worked on to help Demmings turn into a more complete NFL cornerback.